Graham Potter has let Chelsea become soft – it is easy to play against the Blues

Coming off a disappointing midweek defeat at the hands of Dortmund, Chelsea fell disgracefully at Stamford Bridge to bottom placed Southampton.

Here are 3 lessons learned from a toxic evening..

Graham Potter has lost the plot, true or false?

Chosen as the man to lead the ultimate footballing project in the world, Graham Potter seems to have lost his ways at Chelsea as the former Brighton manager has now only won 9 games out of 24 games played.

Having the luxury to call on immensely talented players after being granted a surreal transfer window with over 5 players brought in by the end of January, everything seems to get even worse.
Creativity, intensity and fight all look alien to Chelsea at the moment as teams find joy rolling the Blues over in juggernaut fashion.

Graham Potter has let this side get soft, Chelsea seem easy to play against, every team in the Premier League fancy their chances against Chelsea, especially at Stamford Bridge.

Tactically, Graham Potter has also struggled to get to grips with his present squad, sometimes mis-profiling players (Mount) and utilising them wrongly.

His demeanor during press conferences and on the touch line has also generated various reactions from fans and with results not pleasing at the moment, it gets even harder to support Potter. With everything looking like all is going south at this present time and with a win percentage of 38%, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if Todd Boehly and the board decide to pull the plug and sack Potter. It remains to be seen what the decision will be in the coming days…

Enzo’s quality shines despite poor performance :

Record signing Enzo Fernandez proved to be one of the only positives to take home from a sour afternoon at the Bridge with another classy showing in the middle of the park against a fierce Southampton midfield.

Starting the game alongside the returning Kovaciç, Enzo had an added attention paid to him by the Southampton midfield as he came under huge pressure every time he got on the ball whist also being the victim of some really strong challenges and tackles, on one occasion fighting back against Perraud.

Despite special attention paid to him by the Saints (most fouled player – 4) Enzo didn’t flinch as he went about his business at the middle of the park with immense quality as always.

Showing his quality and fight, Enzo ended the game with a 91% pass accuracy and completed 4 of 6 long balls. His fierce character also saw him win most duels with 11, and made 8 ball recoveries. In a really dim Stamford Bridge performance, Enzo Fernandez proved to be a light shining bright amongst Potter’s men.

Kovaciç’s return is a positive :

A player sorely missed due to his impact on the team when he plays, Mateo Kovaciç’s return to the team does look another positive in a rather difficult time to find any at Stamford Bridge.

The Croatian international started the game alongside Enzo as the pivot and his leadership quality and influence is worthy of note as he battled hard in a really intense midfield battle.
With Southampton showing particular interest and determination to snuff out any Chelsea threat whatsoever, the game was largely played in the middle of the park.

With tackles flying in and hard challenges the order of the day, Mateo Kovaciç didn’t hide from the ball despite only returning from injury as he often drove from midfield, completing 3 of his 4 dribbles (most in the match).

Partnering with Enzo, Kovaciç also gave the Argentine the license to join the attack a lot more with his experience helping out defensively and on one occasion helping to stop a certain Southampton goal with a loser ditch recovery tackle on Sekou Mara. Boasting a 100% accuracy on his long balls with 7/7 attempted, Kovaciç’s passing range was on show in what certainly proved a more compatible pairing with Enzo than seen in previous outing.

Hopefully, the Croat does keep fit and we get to see him in action alongside Enzo in a better showing than the horror show today at the Bridge.

Next up for Chelsea is a London derby against rivals, Tottenham Hotspur, next weekend.
Our thoughts are with wounded captain, Cesar Azpilicueta who got stretched-off after having a boot smashed against his head as he attempted to clear a ball in the 75th minute.